Trading in is a bad idea because you're going to get about 30% less for your car than it's worth. Sell it private party. Second, there's a shortage of used cars in the market now so it should be easier than ever to sell your car on Autotrader, or the like. I sold my '99 Chrysler 300M two days after the ad went live and had multiple offers. I got 50% more than what the dealer offered me ($3,300 versus $2,200). That being said, trading in a 2-year old car is a bad idea because you've already absorbed the worst amount of the depreciation cycle. A financial planner would tell you to wait two years, sell your car private party and buy the then used 2011 in 2013 from some schlep who's willing to eat the depreciation, not you.
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